"Liam, are you awake?"
A gentle knock sounded against the wooden door, followed by the voice of a girl with short black hair and calm, obsidian eyes. A sword hung securely at her waist—she is Sana, one of Liam's childhood friends.
The small house they rented belonged solely to their party, modest but comfortable enough for a B-rank adventuring group.
Receiving no response from inside, Sana frowned. "Can we—"
Her words faltered the moment she pushed the door open, The room was empty.
Still confused, Sana descended the creaking wooden stairs to the first floor, where the faint aroma of breakfast lingered in the air. At the table sat two girls—her teammates and fellow childhood friends—quietly eating as the morning light filtered through the window.
"Alice, do you know where Liam is?" Sana asked, turning to the blonde girl with twin tails and bright green eyes.
"No idea," Alice replied flatly, taking a delicate sip of her tea without looking up.
"I saw him head out at dawn," said Ruby, the last of their group. Her long brown hair was tied in a high ponytail, and her Scarlet eyes—sharp and vivid—matched her name perfectly.
"Went to train again? He should just give up at this point," Alice muttered under her breath, irritation lacing her tone as she set her cup down a little too hard.
Sana lowered her gaze, her voice soft and uncertain. "We have to tell him soon."
Ruby looked up, worry flickering in her crimson eyes. "But… are you really okay with this? You're the closest to him out of all of us, Sana."
A shadow of pain crossed Sana's face, and she forced a faint smile that didn't reach her eyes. "It's fine… this is for his own good too."
"Tch, that guy will definitely make a scene when he finds out," Alice said, clicking her tongue in annoyance.
Silence fell over the table. The three of them exchanged uneasy glances, their expressions heavy with guilt. Truth be told, all of them were hiding something from Liam—something they didn't have the heart to reveal. But whether they liked it or not, in just two days… the truth would reveal itself.
-------
With my new identity as Liam—the protagonist of this damn game I'd meant to gift my friend as revenge—I left the inn at early dawn. There were a few things I needed to take care of fast, and honestly, I had no desire to see those girls' faces right now.
This town… it was the starting area in the game. Because I'd played it before, I knew my way around, even if everything felt strange from this first-person perspective. The cobblestone streets, the market stalls, the fountain in the plaza—it all looked the same, yet painfully real.
And there is one place I need to visit while I still can.
Artheria is a fantasy world modeled after medieval Europe.
As an avid gamer, I'd always dreamed of being reborn into a world like this—swinging swords, casting magic, building a harem of beautiful girls along the way. But not here. Not in this cursed world.
That's because, Artheria was a nightmare made real. Monsters prowled the wilds, fanatical cults waged terror on cities, kingdoms clashed in endless wars, and demons lurked behind every shadow. Corruption, bloodshed, betrayal—chaos was the natural order of this world.
This Dawn Kingdom, where the story began, was considered one of the few peaceful regions. But "peaceful" was a relative term.
Because here, even a moment of carelessness could cost your life—and with my current strength, I wouldn't last through a single major event.
That being said, since I've transmigrated, shouldn't I have one of those? You know… a system.
"Hello, system, are you there?" I called out half-jokingly as I walked across the plains outside the town. Being one of the largest adventurer hubs in the kingdom, the area around here was relatively safe—either cleared of monsters or populated only by weak, low-level ones.
Of course, nothing answered. No robotic voice, no fancy blue interface, not even a beep.
I sighed in disappointment. "Figures. It would've been nice if I could at least see my status"
The words barely left my mouth before a sharp chime echoed in my head.
A faint light flickered before me, and a translucent holographic screen materialized in the air, displaying lines of text—my personal information, neatly organized.
[Name: Liam
Age: 20 years
Race: Human
Mana: 33
Unique abilities: None
Devine blessings: None
Traits:
Passive: Hard worker
Active: None
Spells: Haste, Wind Slash
Arts: Basic swordsmanship (Lv8), Physical Enchantment (Lv3)
Element: Wind ]
I flinched at the sudden appearance of the screen, blinking in disbelief. "So it does exist…?" I murmured, leaning closer. Maybe it only responded to specific commands?
I tried giving it a few more, Nothing. The glowing screen remained stubbornly silent. My brief excitement fizzled out as quickly as it had come, and a sigh slipped from my lips.
"So this is all it does? Useless."
I dismissed the screen with a wave, watching it fade from view. It was exactly as I remembered from the game—Liam's Status was pathetic compared to everyone else's.
On top of that, even with the memories of the original Liam, it didn't change the fact that I'd never actually wielded a weapon or cast a spell before. Knowledge alone wasn't enough—I needed to synchronize my mind, body, and those inherited memories into one. Only then could I truly call this body my own.
But that was a task for another day. For now, I needed to focus on what was right in front of me.
"Wait… let's try this," I muttered, a flicker of excitement sparking in my chest. My heartbeat quickened as I whispered the word, "Haste."
In an instant, my body felt lighter—air rushed past me as my legs moved on their own. I broke into a sprint, the ground blurring beneath my feet.
"Haha! What the hell—this speed! Even Bsain Uolt would look like a toddler next to me!" I shouted, laughing breathlessly as the thrill of power coursed through me.
----
An hours and half later.
I finally arrived at my destination—a narrow cave on the outskirts of the forest. From the outside, it looked completely ordinary, shallow, and empty. Anyone else would've assumed it led nowhere.
But that's just a facade.
"Let's see… it should be around here," I muttered, running my hands along the rough stone wall. One by one, I pressed several loose rocks until—*click.*
A low rumble echoed through the cave as the ground trembled slightly. A few boulders shifted aside, revealing a hidden passage behind the wall—a gap just wide enough for a person to slip through.
From within, a staircase descend downward into darkness, so deep that the end couldn't be seen.
"Bingo," I whispered, a grin tugging at my lips.
Without a moment's hesitation, I stepped into the passage and began my descent. The air grew colder the deeper I went, the faint echoes of my footsteps swallowed by the silence. I had no idea how long I'd been walking, but surprisingly, fatigue never set in—perhaps this body, tempered by years of harsh training, was far more resilient than i expected.
Eventually, a dim glow appeared ahead, faint but unmistakable.
"The end… finally," I murmured, quickening my pace as the light at the bottom of the stairs grew brighter.